Emmanuel Cooper

The Estate of the Artist

Josie Walter, 'By Potters, For Potters, Ceramic Review 1970-2010', Emmanuel Cooper Retrospective (exhibition catalogue), Ruthin Craft Centre, in association with the University of Derby, 2013, pp.50-55, illustrated p.55.

Structurally sound with no obvious cracks or breaks, there are one or two very tiny visible firing hairlines to some of the thicker globules of white glaze, only noticeable upon extremely close inspection, but these excepting the work appears in excellent overall condition. Please telephone the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Emmanuel Cooper’s standing within the field of British studio ceramics is far-reaching.  As co-editor of Ceramic Review he also wrote extensively on potters including Bernard Leach, Lucie Rie and Magdalene Odundo.  Yet aside from his literary prominence, he held a position as one of the most prolific makers of the second half of the last century.  Cooper was drawn to the excitement and endless possibilities that clay presented to him right up until his death in 2012 at the age of 73.

Training under Gwyn Hanssen Pigott and later Bryan Newman, Cooper soon set up his own pottery in Westbourne Grove, soon moving north to Finsbury Park.  In 1976 he moved for what was to be the last time to a quiet corner of Primrose Hill, with a studio and shop front overlooking the street and a flat above.  Like a tempting sweet shop, the windows were crammed with a rich array of brightly glazed pots, with fascinatingly textured glazes filling every available space. Cooper’s work grew and developed throughout the course of his life as he explored form and function, and it was in his masterful glazing that his skill really shone through, whether in the varied multicolour glazes that sing with a tasty, almost hallucinogenic richness, or his lusciously thick volcanic glazes (as seen in the present work), reminiscent of some of the later work of Lucie Rie.